Headband



United States Patent 3,015,335 HEADBAND Ross C. Whitman, Framingham Center, Mass, assignor to The Kendall Company, Boston, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts No Drawing. Filed Sept. 24, 1959, Ser. No. 841,933 8 Claims. (Cl. 132-9) The present invention relates to protective head bands used in permanent wave applications of the so-called cold wave type, and more particularly to head bands which have been treated to retard skin irritation and toxic effects which sometimes are caused by reducing agents which are used in the procedure of applying such a permanent wave. 7 v V In applying a so-called cold wave, the hair is treated with a suitable reducing agent to split some of the cystine linkages present in the keratin structure of the hair. This is done while the hair is held in curled or coiled condition. After the reducing agent has reacted with the hair, its reaction activity is stopped by the application of suitable oxidizing agents and the keratin cystine is thereby rebuilt in the hair structure.

Since these reducing agents and oxidizing agents are normally applied in the form of dilute aqueous solutions, a common practice is to firstwrap the forehead and neck area with an absorbent material, such as paper or cloth, so that the wave solutions will not drip down the face and neck of the wave recipient. Absorbent, disposable, nonwoven fabrics are preferred for this purpose because these materials normally hold greater volumes of liquid and have higher wet strength than paper or wadding. However, some paper products and some low cost woven fabric materials have been used for this purpose. These protective devices are commonly referred-to as head bands and it is toward the improvement of materials used for head bands that my invention is directed.

Although absorbent headbands used in cold wave application do minimize the physical annoyance caused by the dripping of solutions from the hair to the face and neck areas, their use on certain sensitive individuals may be accompanied by a variable degree of skin irritation. Normally, if left exposed to the air, these reducing solutions, such as thioglycollates, alkali metal sulfites, and amine sulfites, will oxidize rather readily, thereby losing their irritative reducing effect. When these reducing solutions are entrapped in an absorbent medium such as a headband, however, the normal atmospheric oxidation process is retarded. Under such conditions, prolonged contact with the skin of certain individuals may cause irritation and discomfort.

It is therefore a primary object of this invention to provide an improved absorbent band for use during cold permanent waving of human hair.

It is also an object of this invention to provide a headband treated to minimize the possibility of skin irritation due to the reducing solutions used in the cold wave process.

I accomplish these objects by impregnating the band with a water soluble salt of a bivalent metal selected from the group consisting of manganese, cobalt, nickel, iron, and copper. The chlorides of these metals are in general the most satisfactory for the purpose of my invention but, any soluble salt such as the nitrates may be used.

I have found that by impregnating an absorbent headband with a small amount of a stable, non-irritating catalytic agent in the form of a water soluble salt of a bivalent metal as set forth above, I can produce a band that has the desirable property of rapidly transforming a potentially irritating reducing fluid to its non-irritating oxidized Patented Jan. 2., 1962 state, thereby not only overcoming the discomfort occasionally encountered in the use of a head-band, but also accelerating the desired oxidation process to a rate beyond the rate realized by atmospheric oxidation.

Of particular utility in the headband field are the nonwoven fabrics which resemble a soft cotton felt, preferably in the weight range of to 200 grams per square yard. Such products, described in US. Patent No. 2,625,733, have a unique fibrous structure that causes one layer of material to cling rather firmly to another layer when placed in contact with it. This cling effects a sort of self sealing property which eliminates the need for tying the ends of the headband to keep it in place.

Alternatively, other conformable and absorbent non- Woven fabrics may be used, or absorbent fibrous batts lightly needle-punched or otherwise unified. Although the exact nature of the band is not critical, I prefer to use non-Woven fabrics which have a moisture pickup of at least four times their weight in hair-waving fluid. I have found that such bands afford very adequate protection in hair-waving procedures, since materials which have an absorbent capacity of this magnitude are, in gen eral, conformable enough to fit closely to the scalp and forehead. As will appear below, it is desirable that as much run-ofi hair-waving fluid as possible be trapped and absorbed by the headband: this accentuates the need for conformability and snug fit, as well as a high moisture absorbency and retention.

Preferably, the salt is applied to the head band material by dipping the material into an aqueous solution containing between .0005 and .05% of the desired salt in solution. The excess solution is removed by passing the material through a nip, and the headband material is dried to have the desired salt impregnated into the fibrous constituents of the head band material. I find that salt concentrations of between 0.001 and 0.1% based on the dry weight of the headband material have proven highly eflicient in preventing the skin irritation of the kind heretofore mentioned, and for reasons of economy the concentrations of oxidizing agent on the material is preferably established between these limits.

Since the eflect of the bivalent metallic salt is catalytic, the salt itself is not consumed in the reaction. Much higher percentages of catalytic agent can be used in my headbands, but I have found that higher percentages are, on the whole, unnecessary in normal hair-waving practices. The agent may be applied to headband material in other ways, as for example, by spraying, or by the use of a transfer roll. Such application techniques are valuable in cases where the absorbent material has a low wetstrength, or where the absorbent material might be otherwise adversely affected by an immersion and squeezing operation.

The headband material thus impregnated with the catalytic agent is then slit to the desired width, which is preferably between one and two inches, and is packaged in rolls or cut strips for use.

I have found that a headband prepared according to my invention not only minimizes the potential irritative effect of prior art headbands, but it is also a more positive protection against irritation than the use of no headband at all. Atmospheric oxidation can be relied on only to an uncertain extent, depending on the skill and diligence of the operator in avoiding or blotting off any drips or traces of reducing solution that run down from the hair. It is especially difficult to prevent reducing solu tions from accumulating in folds, creases, and crevices around the neck and the more fleshy parts of the face. In such folds and creases, atmospheric oxidation is slow and uncertain. I have found, therefore, that by concentrating the dripping reducing solution in an absorbent protective band that is specially treated to promote rapid oxidation, I substantially decrease the incidence of random and incidental skin irritation that accompanies a technique wherein sole reliance is placed on atmospheric oxidation to avoid such irritation.

Other advantageous uses for my catalytic absorbent material will readily occur to those skilled in the art. For example, a strip of my material may be cut into small square or rectangular pads, which may be tucked under an assemblage of curled tresses at the temples, or

the nape of the neck, or the pads may be used simply to blot up excess waving lotion from the part in the hair, or in general used in a similar auxiliary capacity.

Having thus described my invention, I claim: 1. As an article of manufacture, a head band formed of absorbent material containing between about .001 and about 0.1% of a water soluble salt of a bivalent metal selected from the group consisting of copper, manganese, cobalt, nickel and iron. j g

2. Thearticle of claim 1 wherein the absorbent mate rial is a non-woven fabric. Y 1

3. The article of. claim 1 wherein the absorbent material is paper.

4. The article of claim 1 wherein the absorbent material is a woven fabric.

5. A head band for use in permanent waving comprising a strip of absorbent non-woven fabric having a width from 1 to 2 inches and having between .001% to 0.1% by Weight of a chloride of a bivalent metal selected from the group consisting of copper, manganese, cobalt, nickel and iron.

6. The product of claim 5 wherein the chloride is manganous chloride.

7. A head band adapted to retard skin irritation caused by hair-treating chemicals, said head band including a wettable carrier formed primarily of textile-length fibres, a catalytic agent coating at least a portion of said fibres, said catalytic agent being a water-soluble salt of a bivalent metal selected from the group consisting of copper, manganese, cobalt, nickel, and iron, and the weight of said salt being between about 0.001% and about 0.1% of the weight of said carrier.

8. The product of claim 7 wherein the catalytic agent is manganous chloride.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

1. AS AN ARTICLE OF MANUFACTURE, A HEAD BAND FORMED OF ABSORBENT MATERIAL CONTAINING BETWEEN ABOUT .001 AND ABOUT 0.1% OF A WATER SOLUBLE SALT OF A BIVALENT METAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF COPPER, MANGANESES, COBALT, NCIKEL AND IRON. 